After all this time this is the first time I've seen this post. They should highlight this post in bright red or blue, alot of answered questions and would save repeating post from occurring. If you would write a book I would buy it.

I don't know if I posted it here before, but Ted Grossbart's Skin Deep has a bunch of good exercises to help deal with stress as it relates to skin disorders. It has some pretty interesting information as far as how powerful the mind is when it comes to health in general! it's a long read, but worth it to really shift your mindset.

After all this time this is the first time I've seen this post. They should highlight this post in bright red or blue, alot of answered questions and would save repeating post from occurring. If you would write a book I would buy it.

I'm blogging instead. Its my understanding that few books/authors earn any money anyway. With a blog I can post random ideas that come accross and suggestions for meals and activities that are timely or seasonal in amongst the research. Help me by following my blog and sharing my posts. http://dietforclearskin.blogspot.com/

Status: Clear after 30 years. Wow, I guess it's been 6 years, now.

[ Story: Severe Acne since I was 10. 10+ years of Dermatologists, Antibiotics, topicals and ACCUTANE did nothing. Discovered oranges triggered the worst of my cystic acne = about 70% improvement. Tried some nutrient supplements like B-complex with zinc and C, saw palmetto and a BHA like the aspirin mask = more improvement, a lot less oily. Then, Diet changes = Clear.

Regimen: Anti-inflammatory, nutrient dense, blood sugar stabilizing diet and supplements (for hormones, inflammation, aging, health). No soap or other cleanser except for hand washing! Water only or Oil cleanse. Aloe Vera mixed with niacinimide and a high linoleic acid oil for moisturizer and reduce pigmentation.

So, I see they unpinned the food and recipe thread for some reason. I'll find and put a link at h top of this thread.

Status: Clear after 30 years. Wow, I guess it's been 6 years, now.

[ Story: Severe Acne since I was 10. 10+ years of Dermatologists, Antibiotics, topicals and ACCUTANE did nothing. Discovered oranges triggered the worst of my cystic acne = about 70% improvement. Tried some nutrient supplements like B-complex with zinc and C, saw palmetto and a BHA like the aspirin mask = more improvement, a lot less oily. Then, Diet changes = Clear.

Regimen: Anti-inflammatory, nutrient dense, blood sugar stabilizing diet and supplements (for hormones, inflammation, aging, health). No soap or other cleanser except for hand washing! Water only or Oil cleanse. Aloe Vera mixed with niacinimide and a high linoleic acid oil for moisturizer and reduce pigmentation.

This is a beautifully comprehensive post, and I'm going to be studying it. It still kills me though... because my lifestyle should be the last to have to deal with acne. My son is on the austism spectrum, so I cleaned my diet years ago. Gluten-free,casein-free, chemical-free, sugar-free. Lots of organic fruits and veggies, some free-range chicken, eggs from my own free-ranged hens. Skincare that's entirely organic and natural. Why am I the one to have dreadful cystic acne?? It started 8 months ago and is constant.

I'm going to spend some more time on this thread tomorrow and make a list of what I think could help. But it depresses me that our diets and lives are this green and yet I'm the one who can't show her face in public.

This is a beautifully comprehensive post, and I'm going to be studying it. It still kills me though... because my lifestyle should be the last to have to deal with acne. My son is on the austism spectrum, so I cleaned my diet years ago. Gluten-free,casein-free, chemical-free, sugar-free. Lots of organic fruits and veggies, some free-range chicken, eggs from my own free-ranged hens. Skincare that's entirely organic and natural. Why am I the one to have dreadful cystic acne?? It started 8 months ago and is constant.

I'm going to spend some more time on this thread tomorrow and make a list of what I think could help. But it depresses me that our diets and lives are this green and yet I'm the one who can't show her face in public.

Have you tried an elimination diet to determine if you have any delayed type food hypersensitivities? I really think that cysts and nodules tend to be some kind of reaction. Mine were caused by most types of citrus, btw.

Status: Clear after 30 years. Wow, I guess it's been 6 years, now.

[ Story: Severe Acne since I was 10. 10+ years of Dermatologists, Antibiotics, topicals and ACCUTANE did nothing. Discovered oranges triggered the worst of my cystic acne = about 70% improvement. Tried some nutrient supplements like B-complex with zinc and C, saw palmetto and a BHA like the aspirin mask = more improvement, a lot less oily. Then, Diet changes = Clear.

Regimen: Anti-inflammatory, nutrient dense, blood sugar stabilizing diet and supplements (for hormones, inflammation, aging, health). No soap or other cleanser except for hand washing! Water only or Oil cleanse. Aloe Vera mixed with niacinimide and a high linoleic acid oil for moisturizer and reduce pigmentation.

Have you tried an elimination diet to determine if you have any delayed type food hypersensitivities? I really think that cysts and nodules tend to be some kind of reaction. Mine were caused by most types of citrus, btw.

I did read that you had results cutting the citrus. No, I haven't done an elimination diet. My chin is covered in closed comedomal acne as well as cysts though... which typically indicates hormonal acne, no? I just think it's strange that all of this started last June with no change in my diet whatsoever. I've never had perfect skin, but just the occasional breakouts. Now it's waking up every morning to see a another mess starting on my chin, on top of hundreds of scars.

Is it possible to suddenly develop food sensitivities?

My chiropractor thinks it's my thyroid and has started me on a regiment of Standard Process supplements. I wish I was more hopeful.

Have you tried an elimination diet to determine if you have any delayed type food hypersensitivities? I really think that cysts and nodules tend to be some kind of reaction. Mine were caused by most types of citrus, btw.

I did read that you had results cutting the citrus. No, I haven't done an elimination diet. My chin is covered in closed comedomal acne as well as cysts though... which typically indicates hormonal acne, no? I just think it's strange that all of this started last June with no change in my diet whatsoever. I've never had perfect skin, but just the occasional breakouts. Now it's waking up every morning to see a another mess starting on my chin, on top of hundreds of scars.

Is it possible to suddenly develop food sensitivities?

My chiropractor thinks it's my thyroid and has started me on a regiment of Standard Process supplements. I wish I was more hopeful.

Yes, you can develop a food sensitivity at any time. Often in times of stress. And no, acne on the chin doesn't mean it's any more hormonal than the acne you get elsewhere. In fact, I figured out my citrus allergy from a coworker who got big cysts or nodules on her chin but otherwise had perfect skin. So she was able to make the connection. I had all kinds of acne, plus the way cysts take so long to come and go and oranges and juice are such a frequent part of many people's diet. So I always had it and could never notice a connection. But once she said something, I realized that I had been having an orange everyday as an afternoon snack and my skin had gotten worse, but before that it had actually been a lot better, so much so I was starting to consider dermabrasion.

Status: Clear after 30 years. Wow, I guess it's been 6 years, now.

[ Story: Severe Acne since I was 10. 10+ years of Dermatologists, Antibiotics, topicals and ACCUTANE did nothing. Discovered oranges triggered the worst of my cystic acne = about 70% improvement. Tried some nutrient supplements like B-complex with zinc and C, saw palmetto and a BHA like the aspirin mask = more improvement, a lot less oily. Then, Diet changes = Clear.

Regimen: Anti-inflammatory, nutrient dense, blood sugar stabilizing diet and supplements (for hormones, inflammation, aging, health). No soap or other cleanser except for hand washing! Water only or Oil cleanse. Aloe Vera mixed with niacinimide and a high linoleic acid oil for moisturizer and reduce pigmentation.

but before that it had actually been a lot better, so much so I was starting to consider dermabrasion.

Sorry, could you clarify? Why were you considering dermabrasion if your skin was better? (I'm actually unfamiliar with how dermabrasion works, but I thought it smoothed out the skin somehow.)

Interesting that a food sensitivity can start at any time. Could that could be why my hair started falling out at the same time? I figured that was hormonal as well.

I wasn't stressed out last June... but after years of not sleeping because of my special needs son's nighttime habits, I had just started to relearn how to stay asleep. You'd think that would give me *clearer* skin, but maybe my body had just had enough and the stress was catching up.

I will try to start eliminating common allergen foods one at a time, to see if it makes a difference. Regarding the citrus... after the breakouts became constant, I started using fresh lemon juice as a toner. I was trying to go as natural as possible, but that would be problematic if citrus was causing this!

but before that it had actually been a lot better, so much so I was starting to consider dermabrasion.

Sorry, could you clarify? Why were you considering dermabrasion if your skin was better? (I'm actually unfamiliar with how dermabrasion works, but I thought it smoothed out the skin somehow.)

For scar removal or minimizing. There's no point in doing it if you are just going to get more, so when my skin was better for a bit, I considered it. I really don't remember exactly, I just know that it had been good enough to make me want to try to do something about the scars. But then, January came, oranges were on sale...

Edited by alternativista, 18 March 2013 - 02:28 PM.

Status: Clear after 30 years. Wow, I guess it's been 6 years, now.

[ Story: Severe Acne since I was 10. 10+ years of Dermatologists, Antibiotics, topicals and ACCUTANE did nothing. Discovered oranges triggered the worst of my cystic acne = about 70% improvement. Tried some nutrient supplements like B-complex with zinc and C, saw palmetto and a BHA like the aspirin mask = more improvement, a lot less oily. Then, Diet changes = Clear.

Regimen: Anti-inflammatory, nutrient dense, blood sugar stabilizing diet and supplements (for hormones, inflammation, aging, health). No soap or other cleanser except for hand washing! Water only or Oil cleanse. Aloe Vera mixed with niacinimide and a high linoleic acid oil for moisturizer and reduce pigmentation.

Sorry, could you clarify? Why were you considering dermabrasion if your skin was better? (I'm actually unfamiliar with how dermabrasion works, but I thought it smoothed out the skin somehow.)

For scar removal or minimizing. There's no point in doing it if you are just going to get more, so when my skin was better for a bit, I considered it. I really don't remember exactly, I just know that it had been good enough to make me want to try to do something about the scars. But then, January came, oranges were on sale...

Ah got ya. Did you ever wind up doing it once you cleared up your acne? Just curious.

My acne is fairly mild and well-controlled with The Regimen, but I'd like my skin to clear up completely so I'm looking to add some supplements. My diet is pretty good in my opinion, lots of variety, lots of greens, lots of protein, etc so I don't think I'm missing too much but I figure it couldn't hurt to try to add some more nutrients.

However, this thread is a little...overwhelming lol. Could someone suggest some simple supplements that might help me get all the way clear? I've heard good things about zinc, but I'm on doxycycline right now and I've heard that they don't work well together.

Also, has anybody tried the "Perfect Skin" supplement by Genuine Health? It was recommended by the book "The Clear Skin Diet" and I've been considering it, but I think I'd like to start with something simpler first like a zinc supplement.

An attempt to compare worldwide salt consumption with heart disease rates found that high salt consumption doesn't correlate to high heart disease rates. People all over Asia consume far more salt than westerners do. What matters is what else you eat and what else you do. And perhaps the type of salt. Consider the so-called Japanese Paradox, in which a population that consumes very high amounts of salt have a lower heart disease incidence. Why? Because, salt isn't the issue. Much like with the so-called French Paradox, western conventional medicine focuses on the wrong issues and prescribes the wrong treatments.

: Two studies out of Australia, hot off the press in the journal Diabetes Care, report that for both type 1 and type 2 diabetics, low sodium intake was associated with increased risk of mortality from cardiovascular disease and all other causes. This was not completely surprising because it is known that low sodium intake results in increased insulin resistance. This means that more insulin is needed to stimulate insulin-sensitive cells to remove glucose from the blood. Although these studies do not prove cause and effect, they do stress the need for caution in making sodium recommendations and the need to conduct appropriately controlled human studies.
Another study found that when adults (ages 40 to 65 whose blood pressure exceeded 120 over 80) added vegetable juice containing 480 to 960 mg of sodium to their daily diet, their blood pressure dropped during this 12-week study. This juice also added a similar amount of potassium to their diets.
McCarron points out that worldwide sodium intake varies between about 3,100 and 3,800 mg per day. When sodium intake drops too far below 3,000 mg per day, hormonal changes apparently trigger the drive to seek out food sources of sodium.
Low sodium intake increases insulin resistance?

Sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium concentrations are all connected, When we get enough potassium, calcium and magnesium our “appetite” aka, our need for sodium declines. In fact, it is effected by all the positive ions, but those are the big ones. Most of us are low on magnesium.

Salt is essential but you must maintain a proper potassium to salt ratio. Most Americans today eat far too much processed food and not enough whole plant foods and therefore do not consume enough potassium in relation to their salt consumption. That's the issue with salt consumption and high blood pressure and heart disease. What you want to do is eat more real, whole foods and use natural salt.

Now, it's important to note that some people are more sensitive to salt than others and this can be observed with elevated blood pressure after salt intake. I noticed it when I first started brushing my teeth with baking soda. But perhaps this is a factor of that potassium ration again. And what else you do in your diet. Besides, I brush my teeth with baking soda again and have not observed an elevation in blood pressure. I use it in a mixture with sea salt and a calcium source. Currently Dolomite powder with magnesium. When that's gone, I'll try calcium bentonite clay. MAgnesium lowers blood pressure, so that may be something to be concerned with when I switch.

Natural salt vs processed table salt-
Natural salt contains 84 percent sodium chloride, and 16 percent naturally-occurring trace minerals, including silicon, phosphorous and vanadium.
Processed (table) salt, on the other hand, contains 97.5 percent sodium chloride and the rest is man-made chemicals, such as moisture absorbents and flow agents. These are dangerous chemicals like ferrocyanide and aluminosilicate. A small amount of iodine may also be added.
And in some countries, where water fluoridation is not practiced, Flouride.

Salt increases insulin sensitivity.

Why Salt is essential

Being a major component of your blood plasma, lymphatic fluid, extracellular fluid, and even amniotic fluid

Carrying nutrients into and out of your cells

Maintaining and regulating blood pressure

Supporting healthy glial cell populations in your brain, which are essential for forming the protective coating known as myelin that surrounds the portion of the neuron that conducts electrical impulses, as well as other vital neurological functions

Helping your brain communicate with your muscles, so that you can move on demand via sodium-potassium ion exchange

[ Story: Severe Acne since I was 10. 10+ years of Dermatologists, Antibiotics, topicals and ACCUTANE did nothing. Discovered oranges triggered the worst of my cystic acne = about 70% improvement. Tried some nutrient supplements like B-complex with zinc and C, saw palmetto and a BHA like the aspirin mask = more improvement, a lot less oily. Then, Diet changes = Clear.

Regimen: Anti-inflammatory, nutrient dense, blood sugar stabilizing diet and supplements (for hormones, inflammation, aging, health). No soap or other cleanser except for hand washing! Water only or Oil cleanse. Aloe Vera mixed with niacinimide and a high linoleic acid oil for moisturizer and reduce pigmentation.

[ Story: Severe Acne since I was 10. 10+ years of Dermatologists, Antibiotics, topicals and ACCUTANE did nothing. Discovered oranges triggered the worst of my cystic acne = about 70% improvement. Tried some nutrient supplements like B-complex with zinc and C, saw palmetto and a BHA like the aspirin mask = more improvement, a lot less oily. Then, Diet changes = Clear.

Regimen: Anti-inflammatory, nutrient dense, blood sugar stabilizing diet and supplements (for hormones, inflammation, aging, health). No soap or other cleanser except for hand washing! Water only or Oil cleanse. Aloe Vera mixed with niacinimide and a high linoleic acid oil for moisturizer and reduce pigmentation.

There is a great free mobile app on iTunes called 'diet & acne' that reviews results from the relevant clinical trials that have been conducted on diet and acne.

Interesting. Not sure why you'd want that info in App form, but okay.

Status: Clear after 30 years. Wow, I guess it's been 6 years, now.

[ Story: Severe Acne since I was 10. 10+ years of Dermatologists, Antibiotics, topicals and ACCUTANE did nothing. Discovered oranges triggered the worst of my cystic acne = about 70% improvement. Tried some nutrient supplements like B-complex with zinc and C, saw palmetto and a BHA like the aspirin mask = more improvement, a lot less oily. Then, Diet changes = Clear.

Regimen: Anti-inflammatory, nutrient dense, blood sugar stabilizing diet and supplements (for hormones, inflammation, aging, health). No soap or other cleanser except for hand washing! Water only or Oil cleanse. Aloe Vera mixed with niacinimide and a high linoleic acid oil for moisturizer and reduce pigmentation.

I don't know why just six weeks. Unless the dosages are very high. Especially for the Zinc. The others are water soluble and you are unlikely to overdose.

You can probably get the same formula over the counter. I used to take one. It was called a 'Stress Formula' of B-complex, Zinc and C. It made my skin a lot less oily and I rarely had any inflamed acne on my face. That was before I began the diet changes.

Status: Clear after 30 years. Wow, I guess it's been 6 years, now.

[ Story: Severe Acne since I was 10. 10+ years of Dermatologists, Antibiotics, topicals and ACCUTANE did nothing. Discovered oranges triggered the worst of my cystic acne = about 70% improvement. Tried some nutrient supplements like B-complex with zinc and C, saw palmetto and a BHA like the aspirin mask = more improvement, a lot less oily. Then, Diet changes = Clear.

Regimen: Anti-inflammatory, nutrient dense, blood sugar stabilizing diet and supplements (for hormones, inflammation, aging, health). No soap or other cleanser except for hand washing! Water only or Oil cleanse. Aloe Vera mixed with niacinimide and a high linoleic acid oil for moisturizer and reduce pigmentation.

Nicotinimide is very good for acne. I don't think there's a reason not to keep it up if it works for you.

Status: Clear after 30 years. Wow, I guess it's been 6 years, now.

[ Story: Severe Acne since I was 10. 10+ years of Dermatologists, Antibiotics, topicals and ACCUTANE did nothing. Discovered oranges triggered the worst of my cystic acne = about 70% improvement. Tried some nutrient supplements like B-complex with zinc and C, saw palmetto and a BHA like the aspirin mask = more improvement, a lot less oily. Then, Diet changes = Clear.

Regimen: Anti-inflammatory, nutrient dense, blood sugar stabilizing diet and supplements (for hormones, inflammation, aging, health). No soap or other cleanser except for hand washing! Water only or Oil cleanse. Aloe Vera mixed with niacinimide and a high linoleic acid oil for moisturizer and reduce pigmentation.